The instant invention relates to the use in augmenting or enhancing the aroma or taste of foodstuffs or chewing gums of the compound 4-methyl-3-cyclohexene-1-carboxylic acid having the structure: ##STR2##
Materials which can provide licorice-like, blueberry, fruity and seedy aroma and taste nuances are well known in the art of flavoring for foodstuffs and chewing gums. Many of the natural materials which provide such flavor notes and contribute desired nuances to flavor and to flavoring compositions are high in cost, vary in quality from one batch to another and/or are generally subject to the usual variations of natural products.
There is, accordingly, a continuing effort to find synthetic materials which will replace, enhance or augment the essential flavor and fragrance notes provided by natural essential oils or compositions thereof. Unfortunately, many of these synthetic materials have the desired nuances only to a relatively small degree or else contribute undesirable or unwanted odor to the compositions. The search for materials which can provide a more refined blueberry flavor or raspberry flavor, for example, has been difficult and relatively costly in the areas of both natural products and synthetic products.
Artificial flavoring agents for foodstuffs have received increasing attention in recent years. For many years such food flavoring agents have been preferred over natural flavoring agents at least in part due to their diminished cost and their reproducible flavor qualities. For example, natural flavoring agents such as extracts, concentrates and the like are often subject to wide variations due to changes in quality, type and treatment of the raw materials. Such variations can be reflected in the end product and result in unfavorable flavor characteristics in said end product. Additionally, the presence of the natural product in the ultimate food may be undesirable because of increased tendency to spoil. This is particularly troublesome in food and food uses where such products as dips, ice cream desserts and yogurt desserts and the like are apt to be stored prior to use.
The fundamental problem in creating artificial flavor agents is that the artificial flavor to be achieved be as natural as possible. This generally proves to be a difficult task since the negativism for flavor development in many foods, medicinal products, chewing gums and toothpastes is not completely known. This is noticeable in products having raspberry and blueberry flavor characteristics, particularly.
Even more desirable are products that can serve to substitute for difficult to obtain natural flavoring agents in foodstuffs as well as chewing gums, medicinal products and toothpastes.
The use in augmenting or enhancing organoleptic properties, e.g. in perfumery, of cyclohexene carboxylic acid derivatives is well known. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 4,113,663 discloses 2-ethyl-6,6-dimethyl-2-cyclohexene-1-carboxylic acid ethyl ester of the formula: ##STR3##
It is indicated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,113,663 that this compound has a particular odor and properties providing an extremely diffuse rose note of very remarkable radiance which is accompanied by honey-like, warm and spicy, fruity, berry-like side notes. It is further indicated that the woody, light flowery base note with fruity, berry-like side notes is reminiscent of dried fruits. Disclosed is the intermediate for preparing this ester, the carboxylic acid having the structure: ##STR4##
Also described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,113,663 are the following cyclohexene carboxylic acid esters and their organoleptic properties:
______________________________________ ##STR5## camphoraceous, woody, very dry, flat, medicial side-note ##STR6## woody, dry, tangy, slightly sweet; ##STR7## camphoraceous, woody, and weak and ##STR8## agreste, [rustic] [reminiscent of eucalyptus seeds], slightly woody and peppery-spicy, some- what fruity, similar to tobacco. ______________________________________
No mention is made in U.S. Pat. No. 4,113,663 of the replacement by cyclohexene carboxylic acids of flavor nuances in blueberry and raspberry flavors.